Time to Look a Where I Am, Where I've Been, and Where I'm Headed

Photo Credit: http://hrringleader.com/

Where I Am
It has been a while since I wrote a post. We have been in the midst of state testing for the last two weeks. I am also preparing my class for what will be a heartbreak for me. I have four more weeks of school left this year. I've had a wonderful year with some of the best students ever. However, in four weeks I turn my classroom over to a very capable young man. He will finish out my year for me. I will be having surgery and then will spend some time in a rehab facility and then physical therapy throughout the summer. I've been trying to catch up on reviews, prepare my students for the rest of the year and testing. I've had to sprinkle in all those things you must do to prepare yourself, your family and house for when you are away. I realized I had begun to hate my blog as it seemed as if I was always rushing. I had wonderful parents this year that were very supportive. Yet I still felt like I was running behind. I was in the middle of revisions of my latest book and even that got shoved to the side.
I created a summer reading assignment and then gave  this blog url for reading suggestions. In this manner I didn't have to create a small reading list when there are so many great books out there. The assignment allows them to pick their own book and this assures parents there is help out there in case they don't know what to suggest for their kids. My principal was concerned about whether they were appropriate for students and how they would find the books. So, I went back and redesigned my blog adding a simpler way for parents and kids to find just right books for them. At the top of the blog there are four new buttons: Children, Middle Grade, Young Adult, and Adult. If they want to find a book by genre then they can look in the sidebar. However, eventually there will be a link from the books listed to their review. I can continually add to the list.

Where I've Been
It was while I was going through the review to find the list of books that I came across a post from 2011 that reminded me why I blogged, where I started and how well I was doing. You can read it here.  It made me realize that the reason it began to feel like a job instead of what I wanted it to be in the beginning, was because I was spreading myself so thin that I'd lost site of my reason for the blog. I have done no challenges except asking my students to set a goal. I've had no books to give away at school. Most authors are sending me ebooks. This makes it difficult to put new books on my shelves. Due to medical issues there has been no money for new books. I've not been able to do a school wide challenge as we've had so many new challenges this year.

Where I'm Headed
As I go through the summer preparing for next year I need to think seriously what I want for my blog and for my school. I want to continue my writing. That needs to be first and foremost. I've cut down on the number of reviews I can guarantee. I need to get back on track because I have really loved it so much and hate to think I have let those who follow me down. I hope you will continue to follow as my journey continues to evolve. I'm not sure what that will look like, but as long as I constantly reflect on where I've been and what I've done I am sure I will always keep moving and adapting to changes that come my way.

Children's Picture Books by Amy Best and Rachel Michaels

Genre: Picture Books
Source: I received a copy to facilitate my review. The opinions expressed here are my own.

A wonderful group of picture books by two very talented authors. These are great for the youngest child up to kindergarten.

Hopper and Friends
Hopper was moving. Like many kids he was afraid he would not be able to make any new friends. Read to find out whether he was right or wrong. This is a wonderful book to read to a child who is getting read to move. It will show them there is nothing to fear.








Hopper's Birthday Surprise
Hopper's friends want to surprise him on his birthday. Hopper has seen many of them throughout the day and no one wished him a happy birthday. He believes they all forgot ad runs away. Will they be able to find him and give him his happy birthday?

Fiona Fox's Not So Happy New Year
Fiona Fox is dreading the new year. She has set up a list of resolutions and this year she wants to follow all of them. Her resolutions are so strict that the more she thinks about them the sadder she gets. They are very strict. Will she be able to do it?







Jungle Juniors and the Mysterious Egg
Geoff the giraffe and Monica the monkey find an egg while out walking. They take it home to help it hatch. Read the book to find out how they work together to help this egg hatch and exactly what hatches.

Hopper and the Rollercoaster
Hopper is happy a new amusement park is coming to his part of the forest. But, Hopper is hiding a secret. He has a fear of rollercoasters. Every time his friends invite him to go to the amusement park he comes up with an excuse. Then his friend Shannon Squirrel invites him to her birthday party. He accepts and then learns it is to be at the new amusement park. Will Hopper learn to conquer his fear? Will his friends learn his secret?





Belinda Bear's Special Talent
Everyone has a special talent in this wonderful story. That is everyone except Belinda Bear. When an announcement is made that there will be a special talent show, everyone demonstrates their talent except belinda Bear. She has tried telling jokes, Singing, dancing and a circus act, but none of them seem to work for her. She is sad, but happy for her friends. To support them she begins to bake treats for them while they practice. What will happen the night of the talent show?

Lucas the Lion and the Pirate Ship
Lucas the Lion has always protectedhis friends from the hunters. He chases them to the river and stops. He never catches the because he's afraid of water. What do you think will happen when his friends get on a boat on the river?




Monica Monkey Saves the Day
Monica Monkey visits Monkey Beach when his friend Geoff is gone. She has had trouble at Monkey beach in the past. Monica doesn't seem to fit in with the other monkeys. They make fun of her because she is small and not their same color. She has to eat by herself. When they are caught and put in a cage by hunters it is Monica who must save them.

Ryan the Rabbit's Big Move
Ryan and his family have always lived in the carrot patch behind a farmer's house. They have lots of friends. One day his parents tell him and his sisters that they will be moving half way around the world to Africa. They are not sure they will be able to make friends. They don't know what to expect. Imagine Ryan and his sister's surprise while exploring the jungle around their house when they meet a lion. They soon learn that he is friendly and introduce him to carrots. What will happen next?

Death By Sunken Treasure by Kait Carson

Genre:  Adult, Mystery

Source: I received a copy to facilitate my review. The opinions expressed here are my own.

From Goodreads:
When Hayden Kent’s mentor and friend discovers her son Mike’s dead body, dressed in full scuba attire, washed up on Pigeon Key, she needs Hayden. Her paralegal and dive skills may help unravel the tragedy of Mike’s last days. He’d recently discovered a sunken Spanish galleon and rumors that he hit the mother lode ran through the Keys like wildfire. 

Hayden’s dive on the treasure site uncovers gold, and clues that Mike’s death was something far more sinister than an accident. When two different wills, both signed the day Mike died, are delivered to the courthouse, the suspect list grows, as do the threats against her. The danger escalates as she tries to save herself, discover the motive, and find the killer. 

My Thoughts:

I was thrilled to read a book where the action takes place in the Florida Keys. I live in Florida and it is one of our favorite places to visit. Hayden Kent is the main character. The woman who took care of her after her parents died has just lost her son.  They soon decide it was murder. The author has created characters that are very believable, along with a great plot line. I could picture myself in the Keys.  The dives were well described.  The pace is just right for this type of novel.  I realized that this was the second book, and I would definitely need to read the first book to find out how it all started. It is not necessary to read the first one to understand the second one. I am one of those people who doesn’t want to miss out.  I had not read anything by this author, but would definitely recommend them.

Author Website

Dying to Dance by Jamie Cortland

Genre: Adult, Romance, Suspence
Source: I received a copy to facilitate my review. The opinions expressed here are my own.

From Goodreads:
Char and Diana Mansville, two sisters in their early twenties, lose their parents in a tragic accident. Finding themselves on the brink of financial disaster, they re-locate to southwest Florida to live with their aunt, a beautiful and wealthy ballroom dancer.
Once there, they meet handsome and charismatic Roland Donovan, who is a sociopath and involved in a deadly insurance scheme. Stricken by Diana's beauty and charm, he sets his focus upon her and relentlessly begins his pursuit of her.

My Thoughts:
The book starts out describing the tragic death of Char and Diana. After the loss of their parents they move to Florida to stay with their aunt.  Once established the two sister/writers go their separate way. Diana finds a condo not too far from her aunt and begins ballroom dance classes. Char moves to the East coast to live with her grandfather, windsurf, write and take ballroom dancing. As the book progresses we find  that Diana's former boyfriend is a private investigator who has been working a case that takes him back to Florida and Diana. 

There is quite a bit going on in the story. We find the two sisters meeting deadlines with their editors, starting new books, all the while taking competitive ballroom dance classes. I was surprised by the ending.  I thought I knew what was going to happen but was pleasently surprised to realize I was wrong.  This is a good book and one I would recommend to those who likesuspense, and romance that isn't mushy and full of sex.

The Rise of Ren Crown by Anne Zoelle

Genre: Young Adult, Fantasy
Source: I purchased a copy

From Goodreads:

Reeling from what the students at Excelsine University are calling "Bloody Tuesday," Ren is determined to regather her magical family. But the events of the attack were not without multiple costs. Magically broken and exposed, Ren is ripe pickings for multiple factions that want to use and chain her, and the Department is the scariest of the pack.

With only a limited amount of time to save her friend, and confined with the rest of the student body awaiting their fate, Ren stands a mere hairsbreadth from losing her freedom completely with each and every decision she makes.

My Thoughts:

I thought that this was the final book in the series, and was surprised to learn it is not.  Ren’s character continues to grow.  She continues to be the best friend that she can be. She still puts herself on the back burner for her friends. The bond between all of them is strong.  In this book we see more of the contrast between Dare and Constantine.  Ren’s magic makes her a target which in turn puts her friends in danger.  The loyalty and disloyalty in this book has been taken up a notch. Fighting the “Department” was terrifying to read.  This book in my opinion is much darker and more violent. Don’t get me wrong, I love dark novels. This one seemed to end so abruptly that I can’t wait to read what will be in the next one. I will warn that this one is a lot more violent.  I enjoyed it immensely.

The Protection of Ren Crown by Anne Zoelle

Genre: Young Adult, Fantasy
Source: I received a copy to facilitate my review. The opinions expressed here are my own.

From Goodreads:

Barely surviving her first term at college, all Ren wants to do over break is relax and bond with her roommate—not get eaten by a sentient building or attacked on the street. But with increasingly open warfare brewing between the magical factions and Layers of the world, this time, Ren will not fail in making sure everyone she loves stays safe and protected. 

That includes doing things like filling her parent's house with personal art heavily embedded with wards, bubble-wrapping her increasingly imperiled roommate, and even making sure that a certain sexy thorn-in-her-side continues to breathe free air.

Finding herself on duty protecting the entire university alongside campus god Alexander Dare...was not what she'd had in mind. 

But this time it's not only her life on the line. And Ren will do anything to protect those she loves.

My Thoughts:

While I loved the first book in this series, the second was even better. We get to see the characters grow throughout the story. No stale, static characters here.  I really enjoyed getting to know Dare better.   Excelsine, the world the author has created just keeps getting better.  Ren has worked her magic when it comes to friending people. Olivia has started to come around now.  Reading this book is like peeling an onion one layer at a time. The story line gets sweeter and sweeter.

The Awakening of Ren Crown by Anne Zoelle

From Goodreads:
Ren Crown is a high school senior searching for her identity when a devastating attack on her twin brother thrusts her into a hidden world of magic. Fighting forces that she is woefully unprepared for, Ren illegally enrolls in a prestigious secret university where magic is plentiful and danger is absolute.

Determined to set her family back to rights, she is blocked at every turn and faced with a new reality of boundless fascination and possibility. Animated creations, enchanted gadgets, and marvelous machines vie with the students themselves: mischievous engineers, diabolical tacticians, battle-hardened warriors, and terrifying roommates.

But even amidst an eclectic student body, there is something off about Ren's magic...and the wrong people have started to notice.

Caught in a tightening web, Ren's values stand trial, as does the fate of the world.

My Thoughts:

I loved how thought out the characters were. They became real on the pages. The love Ren feels for her twin brother goes above and beyond. It made me ask how far I would go for one of my siblings, and would I know when enough was enough? I really liked that the romance/crush wasn’t over done in this book. I hate mushy romances, always have. We didn’t find what is found in so many stories, instant love. Instead the author let feelings develop slowly and naturally. The creation of all of the magical creatures shows how well developed the author’s imagination is. That for me is a big plus.

The title was the best at describing what happened to Ren, her magic awakens.  Awesome characters, great world building, make this a series to be read.   Come back tomorrow for the second book in the series, The  Protection of Ren Crown and then Saturday for the final book in the series, The Rise of Ren Crown.

Five Very Cute Picture Books

Opposites by Kerry McQuaide
This is another Midge and Moo Adventure book. Walk through a day of opposites with Midge and her stuffed cow Moo as they explore words that are opposites. Watch them make loud music and read a quiet book. A wonderful beginning book to teach opposite words.





Me Too by Lea Kirshenberg
Puggy is a little dog who admires his neighbor dog, a big black dog they call King. He has become quite jealous of him. Then one day he has to stay with the neighbor while his owner fixes up their houses. After a couple of days he realizes he misses his things and that Kings things aren't really all that special. This is a wonderful book for teaching children to appreciate the things that they have.

Rowdy the Pirate Who Could Not Sleep by Darcy Pattison
Rowdy the pirate can't sleep she claims she would give a chest of gold just to be able to sleep. Her crew sets out to find a way to help their captain sleep and claim the prize. But, nothing seems to work. They steal items and try them on their captain; scary tales, and songs of war. Who will claim the prize and help the captain sleep?  Told in great rhyming pirate "speak". Another great book by this wonderful author.



Oliver and Jumpy 37-39 by Werner Stejskal

Rescue in the Picture - Oliver, Jumpy and Joey travel through his painting to a deserted island where they use their kowledge of superstitions to rescue a young native girl
Wet Cat - For Joey's birthday Oliver and Jumpy take him on a boat ride to hear his favorite group sing. On the way back Oliver is thrown overboard and no one notices. Who will rescue Oliver before he drowns or is eaten by a shark?
Down River - On an adventure to Ghost Castle, Oliver and his friends take a ride downa white water river. They have to prevent a crocodile and tiger from eathing them for lucnh. How will they survive and get back home

A Sunny Day by Eric Jay Cash
Four young paleolithic children learn new words. This is a very simple book for the youngest child in your house.

Escape From the Past: The Dukes Wrath by Annette Oppenlander

Genre:  Young Adult, Fantasy, Historical Fiction

Source:  I received a copy to facilitate my review. The opinions expressed here are my own.

From Goodreads:

When fifteen-year-old nerd and gamer Max Anderson thinks he's sneaking a preview of an unpublished video game, he doesn't realize that 1) He's been chosen as a beta, an experimental test player. 2) He’s playing the ultimate history game, transporting him into the actual past: anywhere and anytime. And 3) Survival is optional: to return home he must decipher the game's rules and complete its missions—if he lives long enough. To fail means to stay in the past—forever.

Now Max is trapped in medieval Germany, unprepared and clueless. It is 1471 and he quickly learns that being an outcast may cost him his head. Especially after rescuing a beautiful peasant girl from a deadly infection and thus provoking sinister wannabe Duke Ott. Overnight he is dragged into a hornets' nest of feuding lords who will stop at nothing to bring down the conjuring stranger in their midst. 

My Thoughts:

I love time travel books. This one here was over the top. You have a kid transported to another time through a video game.  Every kid today will be able to identify with that. Imagine going from current time to medieval times. No matter what you have read in books, you would not have everything you need to fit in.

I loved that you were brought into the book and into the time period. This is what great Historical Fiction does. Students will be so enthralled with Max and his situation they won’t even realize they have been learning history until they start talking with each other. Through this book  readers will learn what life was like for everyone during this time from the lowly peasant all the way up to the life of a knight.

My problem with a lot of time travel stories is the manner in which the author chooses to  bring their character back to present time. I’m often left feeling cheated. I can tell you up front you won’t feel that way with this book.  You will love it.  This is a series I can say I will enjoy from beginning to end. I can’t wait for my first student to read it.

Shards of Murder by Cheryl Hollon

Genre: Adult, Mystery

Source: I received a copy to facilitate my review. The opinions expressed here are my own.

From Goodreads:

When a glass-making competition turns deadly, glass shop owner Savannah Webb must search for a window into a criminal's mind…

As the new proprietor of Webb's Glass Shop, Savannah has been appointed to fill her late father's shoes as a judge for the Spinnaker Arts Festival, held in downtown St. Petersburg, Florida. With her innovative glass works, the clear winner is Megan Loyola, a student of Savannah's former mentor. 

But when Megan doesn't show up to accept her $25,000 award, rumors start flying. And when Savannah discovers the woman's dead body on festival grounds, the police immediately suspect her of murder. To keep from appearing before a judge herself, Savannah sorts through the broken pieces of glass scattered around the victim for clues as to who took this killer competition too far

My Thoughts:

Cheryl has once again spun a mystery that will grab you and hold you all the way to the end. Her characters are well rounded complete with flaws. The information the reader gleans from the story about stained glasswork makes this so much fun to read. Personally, I prefer books that not only have a mystery (my favorite genre), but has something I can learn.  One thing I loved is that Savannah who made the decision as to who won the competition, becomes the prime suspect. Then she and her friends jump in to find the real killer. This book, like her first one will grab hold of you until you turn the last page. This book, if you haven’t read the first one would be a great stand- alone book. I highly recommend this book.